Chantilly, 10/07/2008 (Agence Europe) - Social dialogue (between employers and trade unions) should be the driver of Social Europe, and the role of the social partners and the Social Platform is extremely important if one wants to make the EU more tangible as far as EU citizens are concerned. This was the main message of a meeting of ministers of the current 'trio' of EU presidencies (Xavier Bertrand, French Labour, Social Relations and Solidarity Minister; Michal Sedlaeek, Czech Secretary of State for Labour and Social Affairs; and Bettina Kashefi, Sweden's Secretary of State for Health and Social Affairs) with EU Social Affairs Commissioner Vladimir Spidla and representatives of the EU social partners and the Social Platform in the afternoon of Thursday 10 July 2008 at Chantilly in France. The debates were described as very positive and highly animated, with the participants expressing delight at being able to express themselves in complete liberty and with the impression of being listened to. They agreed on the need to breathe new life into Social Europe.
Are such debates are good sign?, asked Xavier Bertrand. Yes, he said, because the climate was very positive and constructive with total freedom of speech. He said people did not always say the same thing but all had spoken about the same topic - Social Europe - and this showed that social dialogue had a role everywhere and should be one of the drivers of Social Europe. He added that social dialogue was a priority at EU and national level. Xavier Bertrand said that social dialogue was important from the viewpoint of flexicurity, whose common principles have already been adopted, and the flexicurity mission launched by Vladimir Spidla and Gérard Larcher. On Thursday, dialogue opened on the topic of the EU social agenda to translate this new social ambition on the European front, explained Xavier Bertrand, adding that this was certainly not the time for turning in on oneself on the social front, or for less Social Europe. On the contrary, he said, we need more Social Europe. Europe talks to travellers (making it easy to travel and the euro making things easier for consumers) but Europe also has to talk to workers. In this connection, he said, he had wanted to raise a number of issues which would be faced in the future and would help advance Social Europe - the social consequences of globalisation and climate change, demography and the diversity of European society. Xavier Bertrand asked the social partners and the European Social Platform to organise mobilisation on the issues of the French Presidency to get things moving, like on the review of the European works committees directive (he explained that he meant reaching rapid agreement), which is important for social dialogue and tackling poverty. The minister said what had emerged from the debate was desire to decide on common poverty reduction targets in Europe and it was vital to demonstrate that company freedom was indispensable, as are social rights to avoid social dumping while bearing in mind that Social Europe is important too. In economic terms, said Bertrand, social progress was also needed with economic and social affairs hand in hand rather than one ahead of the other. This is how the EU could move forward, he added.
Vladimir Spidla welcomed the way the renewed social agenda had also been a considerable success for social dialogue. He suggested developing a common approach to defending flexicurity. The commissioner announced that the final part of the flexicurity mission would be a report to be submitted to the autumn 2008 European Council by the European Commission, comparing the various member states' approaches to flexicurity. The Secretary General of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), John Monks , said Social Europe needed to develop and be more visible. The vision of Europe held at by citizens' representatives and trade union members was that of a Europe for companies, he explained, adding that one could not do without social affairs. John Monks welcomed the fact that the European Commission would be making an effort to implement a social progress protocol, explaining that he had the impression that Europe was becoming a little less social and everything should be done to make it more social again. The secretary general of BusinessEurope, Philippe de Buck, said that true social Europe was a Europe that created jobs. He said BusinessEurope had created jobs and could continue to do so in 2008, mentioning 2 million jobs and lower unemployment. He said he wanted this to be recognised. A Europe of companies creates jobs and social dialogue is key to this, he added. Another key point mentioned by de Buck was that it had to be recognised that European works councils was the arena for social dialogue between multinational or European companies and worker representatives, and complicating the way they work would not be a good idea. The secretary general of UEAPME, Andrea Benassi, focussed on mobility because SMEs need a workforce capable of acquiring skills abroad. It is more complicated to increase mobility that one might think, he said, as geographical mobility had to be increased at local and regional level, professionally between industries, intra-European and providing qualifications for young apprentices. Social Europe means well-funded public services focussing on social protection, health and citizen education, explained the chair of the social affairs committee of CEEP (the European Centre for Public Companies and Companies of General Interest), Charles Noodle. The president of the Social Platform, Conny Reuter, issued a very strong message (referring to a message from the SNCF railways company in France), saying that progress is only valid when shared by all. How can one ensure that people think that the EU is improving their lives? Reuter said that she had suggested turning the social package into a sort of new European social package which could take the form of commitment by the Council to put social progress at the heart of the EU project by strengthening the social dimension of EU policies, ensuring better balance between social rights and the single market, tackling discrimination, encouraging equality and strengthening social infrastructure and services of general interest. (G. B/transl.fl)